PLN 2

Dear Mr. Fisch:

            In your blog “The CSAP is Dead. Long Live the CSAP (err,TCAP)” I found it interesting that the CSAP is being rewritten.  I have just recently taken the test and it does need to be enhanced.  Sure, the test seemed to cover the basic standards of “do you know these facts” but the test did not seem to measure if students can make sense of the facts and apply them to every day life. The ability to apply what students learn in school to the real world is, I think, a very important skill to have during this information age. The chance that the state of Colorado will be able to produce one magical test, which is able to completely test each individual student on how they are currently performing and how they are likely to perform in the future is unlikely. Although the issue of standardized testing is complex and controversial, shouldn’t teachers be finding a way to best equip students rather than worrying about a Government issued test? It seems as though it is best to find a curriculum before finding a test. In conclusion, I agree with the quote from Will Richardson, that the new improved test will more than likely not measure how well students love learning, are able to handle real problems and make sense of the world.

PLN 1

Dear Admin,

I am currently a ninth grader and agree with your opinion on online education. Students can easily focus on the things that interest us the most, and commonly once a student finds an area that interests them they typically give it a lot of attention. For example I know of many kids who in school hardly seem to care or try, but once it comes to something like video games, they will spend almost all of their time playing and mastering the game. I agree that the internet has an abundant amount of information and can be of good use to modern students, such as working on material that they do not understand during after school hours with the use of an online curriculum.

Shadowbxing Avatars